Over 1,000 ATMs Shut Down in Bangalore

Cracking a whip for lax security, the Bangalore police shut more than 1,000 ATMs across the city starting from Sunday evening.

Cracking a whip for lax security, the Bangalore police shut down more than 1,000 ATMs across the city on 24 November.

The banks were given a deadline to post round the clock security guards at every ATM, following an incident where a woman was attacked and robbed in an ATM on 21 November. Jyothi Uday was attacked in an ATM kiosk revealing a gaping hole in security provisions in ATMs. The miscreant escaped with Jyothi's mobile phone and cash of ₹2,500.

The police had set a deadline of three days to do so, failing which the ATMs would be shut.

"If they have complied with the government order even after 4pm Sunday, my orders are clear. We will prohibit transactions from happening there with immediate effect," The Times of India quoted Raghavendra Auradkar, Police Commissioner of Bangalore.

The police officials initiated the process of pulling down the shutters minutes after the deadline, which ended at 4 pm on Sunday.

At places, the banks pulled down the ATM shutters as they could not post security guards reported The Hindu.

The order issued by the Police Commissioner of Bangalore also included enabling CCTV surveillance of all ATM kiosks that capture images outside and inside the ATM kiosk and an alarm system in case of a breach.

The police are said to have listed about 2500 ATMs that have not followed the guidelines.

The Banks will be allowed to re-open the ATMs when the mandated guidelines will be put in place.